C76 The Wind and Clouds Become Chaotic and the Mountains Break Apart(2)

The Tanhan Shan's terrain was flat, with flat highlands and grasslands occupying a wide area on most of the mountains. Starting from the Palace, they would walk along the twenty to thirty feet wide mountain road to the mountain for about five to six miles. There, they would see an endless mountain plateau, where the Xianbei People's Heavenly Sacrificial Altar was constructed.

Suddenly, the sun rose high up in the sky. Nearly a hundred thousand Xianbei People s gathered on the flat ground beneath the altar, prostrating themselves in worship. As usual, there were fifty thousand men and horses of the company standing around. They were all dressed neatly, leading their war horses and standing silently.

This altar was originally small and short, but it was later rebuilt and expanded several times by Tan Shihuai. It now occupied a vast area and had a grand and solemn aura.

The flat ground was paved with limestone. On top of it, there was a row of nine shining copper cauldrons. They were one big and eight small. Clearly, they were imitating the nine cauldrons of Yu the Great. However, what was engraved on it was not the mountains and rivers of the Chinese, but the various totems and myths of the Xianbei People.

On both sides of the cauldron stood two huge round obelisks with a radius of five feet, and a height of sixty to seventy feet. On them were carved the most common totem of a horse, deer, and bear in the Xianbei People. On the left side, there was a over ten feet long scimitar standing on top of the pillar, while on the right side, there was a horse galloping with its head held high.

In front of the copper cauldron, there were 99 steps leading upwards. The sides of the steps were sealed with bluestone, and at each of the three steps, there were two huge oil lamps made of bronze. Normally, these oil lamps would be extinguished and would only be lit during the sacrificial ceremony.

At the top of the stairs, there was a four-sided high platform surrounded by bluestone fences that were as tall as a person. In the middle, there was a magnificent hall, inside it were the stone statues of the ancestors of the Xianbei People. The largest statue in the middle was exactly that of Tan Shihuai. He galloped on his horse with his machete pointed straight ahead, as if he was commanding thousands of horses to charge forward.

He Lian placed his hands on his forehead and kneeled in front of Tan Shihuai's statue, muttering some words.

"Oh Great royal father, after your glory has passed away, the Xianbei People began to become confused. They actually wanted to kill me, kill the heir you made, and then promote a new great king! As your son, I will never allow this to happen! I hereby swear that after killing Kebineng, Bu Dugen, and Su Li, I will help them regain the glory of their father when he was still alive! I beg royal father to bless this child's success! "

After the prayer, He Lian stood up and quietly looked at Tan Shihuai's statue. After a long time, he sighed and left the hall with a flick of his sleeve.

"Great King!" Murong Lianxin was wearing a helmet and armor as he stood at the edge of a dry pond outside the hall.

He Lian looked down and asked with a frown, "Those three thieves haven't arrived yet? Earlier, a spy came to report that there were many people in the morning who were slandering This King, and they were boasting about Kebineng's bravery and fairness! Tell me, is Kebineng also plotting against This King? "

"Great King, our spies just reported that Kebineng and Bu Dugen are coming here with over fifty thousand men. They left the heavily injured Su Li in the camp. This lowly general believes that Kebineng may truly be plotting something wrong this time. Fortunately, the King has already made his preparations! "

"No matter what, Kebineng is suicidal!" He sneered and asked, "What's the purpose of Kebineng leaving over ten thousand people behind for Su Li?"

Murong Lianxin pondered for a moment, and replied: "I thought it would be the cavalry that was used to guard against White Horse Camp."

"It seems that way." He Lian nodded in agreement and laughed coldly, "Looks like Kebineng is scared of being beaten up. He actually left behind five times the amount of troops! It was a pity, hehe! "Where is Gongsun Xu?"

"We are already at the palace. Should the King invite him?"

He looked at the thousands of Japanese s who were driving a large group of sheep towards the altar, then looked at the group of people who were tied up in the middle of the flock of sheep. He shook his head and said, "Not for the time being.

In the past, Tan Shihuai had made a rule that when the Xianbei People sacrificed to the heavens, he must slaughter 999 sheep and 99 people. Only then would he be able to obtain the protection of his ancestors and the totem god, and thereby protect the Xianbei People's longevity. Those who were initially treated as sacrifices were all Han Chinese. Furthermore, after he ascended the throne, he used the blood sacrifice of the Han Chinese. Later on, he was scolded by Liu Yu and Gongsun Zan. In order to ease his relationship with the Youzhou, he ordered the abolition of the sacrifice of the Han Chinese.

The Xianbei People s of the Tanhan Shan were already used to the existence of the Japanese s, but many nobles thought that these slaves were lowly and dirty slaves, only worthy of doing dirty work, and did not deserve to appear in the Rites of Heavenly Worship. Therefore, every time these Japanese offered offerings, they would use black scarves to cover their faces. This time's Heavenly Worship Ceremony was no exception.

When the commoners saw Japanese coming over, they all started to discuss softly.

"Those Japanese have come to offer their offerings again! I really don't understand, why would the King allow these lowly things to offer sacrifices? "

"Are you ignorant? I heard that this year's Heavenly Worship Ceremony is going to use the blood of the living again.

"What?" So it turns out that they were offerings as well! No wonder dozens of people were tied up. "

"Yeah, you think offering offerings is a good thing? In fact, although these Japanese are cheap and filthy, they still have good skills in fishing. It's a pity that the King does not allow it, otherwise, I would be willing to use ninety-nine slaves to exchange for their lives! "

"Yeah, brother, your tribe is near the North Sea. If you have a group of Japanese slaves, you can always catch fish. Oh right, why didn't brother ask Lady Er Yu for help after the Rites of Heavenly Worship? "

"Hehe, Lady Er Yu? "Who knows if she'll still be a noble girl after today?"

"Brother, are you saying that there might be chaos today?"

"Cough cough, I didn't say anything. Don't make wild guesses!"

"I understand. It seems like I have to stay as far away as possible."

After a while, the Japanese drove the flock of sheep and brought their ninety-nine companions who were tied up to the altar. The Xianbei People s all stepped aside, looking at them with loathing in their eyes. The Japanese s seemed to be accustomed to this kind of gaze, as they all lowered their heads, not daring to meet Xianbei People's gaze.

"My lord, Kebineng and Bu Dugen are here." Zhao Yun rushed into the palace to report to Gongsun Xu.

Gongsun Xu was chatting softly with Er Yu when he stood up and walked towards the entrance of the hall.

On the distant mountain road, countless cavalry of Xianbei were heading up the mountain. The team in front carried Bu Dugen's large standard, and Bu Dugen, who was dressed in black fish scales, slowly walked under it. At this time, he suddenly turned his head and took a look at the palace, but it was unknown if he saw Gongsun Xu, so he quickly turned his head and continued moving forward.

After Bu Dugen's team was done, Kebineng followed closely and the number of people decreased a bit. Today, Kebineng wore a set of golden fish scales that glittered under the sunlight. He looked like he was made of gold.

Gongsun Xu was very surprised: "Why is that guy wearing such an armor? If something were to happen, wouldn't that make you a living target?! "

"Darling, you don't know." At this moment, Er Yu walked over and explained softly, "That year, when King Tanshihuai first presided over the sacrificial ceremony, he wore this kind of armor. Looks like Kebineng is determined to win today!"

"Hehe" Gongsun Xu sneered: "You want to be the second Tan Shihuai? In my opinion, it's a wasted effort! "

"Of course!" Er Yu chuckled, "With my husband here, how can Kebineng go up to the sky?"

"Stop flattering me!" Gongsun Xu lightly patted her face and asked: "Is your mother ready?"

"Hm!" When you go to the altar, I will tell her to hurry down the mountain and hide. "

"No!" Gongsun Xu shook his head and smiled: "Accompany her down the mountain first."

There was some mist in Er Yu's eyes. She murmured, "It's dangerous over here. I want to stay with you …"

"Don't worry, I will definitely be fine!" Gongsun Xu smiled confidently. He went close to Er Yu's ear and whispered, "Let me tell you a secret."

"So that's how it is!" Er Yu was shocked.

"Do you understand? No matter what, I will not lose! "

"No matter what, you have to be careful!" Er Yu stretched out her hand and adjusted Gongsun Xu's helmet that was a little off balance.

Just then, Ku Le arrived at the entrance of the main hall, bowed and said: "Master! My lord! And King Lian has sent someone to invite you to the altar! "

Gongsun Xu gave Er Yu a light hug and whispered in her ear, "I'm going up. You and your mother should get ready to leave the mountain." "Be careful!"

"En, I will wait for you!" Er Yu lightly touched Gongsun Xu's forehead.

"Let's go!"

Gongsun Xu and Zhao Yun left the palace together. Brother Gongsun Jia and more than a hundred men were waiting outside. When they saw them come out, they quickly pulled their war horses over.

After getting on the horse, Gongsun Xu looked back towards the Race Yard Barracks and whispered: "Feng Xiao, Zi Hu, what if Su Li attacks, I hope you can hold on until reinforcements arrive!"

"Don't worry, my lord. I have just counted the number of people that Kebineng and Bu Dugen have brought up the mountain. I estimate that Su Li has at most ten thousand men under his command, while Officer Guo and Yan Academy Officer have two thousand men under their control. Su Li's heart is broken from the attack, and even if he dares to attack, just ten thousand people will definitely be defeated again!"

"I hope so!" Gongsun Xu took the lead and ran up the mountain.

Moments later, Gongsun Xu and the group saw the altar in the distance.

Kebineng and Bu Dugen's men had already arrived. They started to line up, and started to confront the company's troops from three to four miles away.

Kebineng and Bu Dugen jumped down from their horses, walked to the middle of the common people under the escort of a group of guards, and chatted with them with a smile on their faces. From time to time, he would pat someone on the shoulder or hug them to show his intimacy. Everywhere he passed, the people would bow respectfully and cheer.

Gongsun Xu sighed. "I've long heard that Kebineng is the most popular hero today. If this person did not die, he might really become the second Tan Shihuai! "What a pity, since I, Gongsun Xu am here, someone like you should die early!"